Always and forever- Matteo Riddle

After a couple of hours, the exhaustion still clung to me, but I was more aware now—less foggy, less on the verge of completely shutting down. The quiet chatter of my friends had been a steady background noise, grounding me in a way I hadn't expected.

I stretched slightly, rubbing my temple before glancing at Mattheo beside me. "Can we go have a cigarette?"

His dark eyes flicked to mine, studying me for a second before nodding. "Yeah. Let's go."

Draco, who had been sitting across from us, immediately narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

I sighed. "I just need some air."

Draco didn't look thrilled about it, but he didn't argue. He knew me well enough to know I needed this.

Theo stood up, stretching. "Well, if you're smoking, I'm coming too."

Blaise smirked. "Same."

Pansy rolled her eyes but got up anyway, and just like that, the whole group was coming. I wasn't surprised—it was rare any of us did anything alone.

Mattheo stood first, offering me a hand. I hesitated for a second before taking it, letting him pull me up. He didn't let go right away, his grip lingering just enough to steady me.

"Come on," he murmured, leading the way.

As we made our way out of the common room, the cool air of the castle halls was a welcome relief. I exhaled slowly, already feeling lighter just knowing I was about to get even a moment of quiet outside.

We made our way through the dimly lit corridors, our footsteps echoing softly against the stone. The castle was quiet at this hour, most students either in their dorms or too preoccupied to notice us sneaking toward the Astronomy Tower.

By the time we reached the top, the crisp night air hit me, refreshing and sharp against my skin. The sky stretched out above us, stars scattered like specks of silver, the moon casting a soft glow over the tower. It was peaceful up here—far away from everything, from the weight of the day, from the thoughts that refused to quiet.

We settled into a circle on the cold stone floor, our backs resting against the low wall. Mattheo pulled out his pack of cigarettes, handing them out as we each took one. He flicked open his lighter, the small flame illuminating his face for a second before he leaned in, lighting mine for me.

I inhaled deeply, letting the smoke fill my lungs before exhaling slowly. The burn was familiar, grounding.

For a while, we just sat there in silence, the occasional crackle of a cigarette and the distant hoot of an owl the only sounds. It was comfortable—just us, the night, and the unspoken understanding that none of us needed to talk right now.

Theo eventually broke the silence, his voice calm. "You feeling any better?"

I exhaled another breath of smoke, watching it swirl into the night before nodding slightly. "A little."

Draco shot me a look, skeptical as ever, but he didn't push.

Mattheo leaned back on his elbows, glancing at me. "Good. You scared the shit out of us earlier."

I huffed out a quiet laugh, shaking my head. "Didn't mean to."

Blaise smirked. "You do have a habit of keeping things way too interesting."

Pansy rolled her eyes. "Understatement."

Despite everything, I smiled. Up here, with them, with the quiet night around us, things felt a little lighter. At least for now.